Welcome to the Kingfisher Report. This is where you'll find the latest news on what's happening up at the lodge in Naden Harbour. |
| Date Range: | Topic: |
| 139 Results | (Page 1 of 14) << Back | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Next >> |
The Steelhead are Calling! Posted By QCL - Fri Jan 20th, 2012 - Filed under: General Jin Chong reports from Masset House on Haida Gwaii / Photos by Roger Baker / Steelhead by Rob Clough The temperature in Haida Gwaii has been dropping these past few days and is causing water levels to drop. The usually productive spots are getting too shallow for the fish to hide and it is making the hunt for the Steelhead even more difficult. Most fish have been taken in spots that are not “traditionally productive pools.” However, there are reports of seals in the mid sections of the river and I think it is chasing all the fish up river. We have been finding that fish have been caught upstream from the seal.
Most of the fish I have seen are silver bright and keen to take the fly on the swing. The usual pink and orange colors have been the best producers. This week has been a busy one on the river as the river has finally come into shape. It seems that the whole of December was almost a write off. The forecast looks like its going to warm up a bit over the weekend and I am hoping to get out soon to try some of my new flies. Fingers crossed and I hope to update the blog with some more fish pictures!
 - Comments (0) |
End of 2011 Season Posted By QCL - Fri Oct 21st, 2011 - Filed under: General
What a great summer! All things considered, our 21st season was exceptional. Better than average weather, particularly excellent salmon fishing, a phenomenal staff and more guests than anticipated made this summer of 2011 one to remember!
QCL guests enjoyed lots of great fishing opportunities throughout the summer. Large numbers of teen-sized feeder Springs made a notable impression this year which bodes well for the health of Chinook stocks. We normally see a lot of these fish in June but this year they were present in quantity right into early August. That was in addition to our typical numbers of mature Chinooks in the 25 to 45 pound class so they were a real bonus. The Coho fishery was strong as well with steady numbers in the area from late June thru to September. Of course the big story was our new record Chinook salmon – caught & released by Chris Lewis - which, at 84 pounds, is 2 pounds heavier than the previous record held by Steve Johnson since August 2000. It s so great to know that giants like this beauty are still out there. Kudos to Chris for choosing to let her go and hopefully she will complete the journey all the way back to her home stream this fall.
There were a couple of notable program changes this season that were a huge hit with QCL guests. The introduction of portion packing for guest fish this summer was so well received that we had to hire additional staff just to keep up! Guests loved the ability to return home with their salmon and halibut all vacuum packed in convenient one pound chunks. The eight Grady Whites that we added to the boat fleet also went over extremely well. These vessels have proved very well-matched to our style of fishing and guides and guests alike were thrilled to fish with all the comforts that a Grady provides.
While we all enjoyed the blessings of great fishing and good weather, the summer was especially good because of the people we were able to spend our time with. As managers, we were particularly pleased with our staff this year. They came together really well and made the summer a pleasure for all of us. We would like to send a big thank you out to all!
And for those of you who joined us as a guest at Queen Charlotte Lodge this season, we appreciate that you chose to spend some time with us! Getting away on a fishing adventure is a great holiday and it is especially good to share it with friends in spectacular Haida Gwaii. Enjoy each of those delicious fish dinners this winter and we hope to see you next summer to do it all over again! Thank you - Comments (0) |
September 4th Report Posted By QCL - Sun Sep 4th, 2011 - Filed under: General
- Comments (0) |
September 1st Report Posted By QCL - Thu Sep 1st, 2011 - Filed under: General
Fishing paradise is still going strong! The weekend trip wrapped up with a phenomenal Sunday! A few showers over flat water didn t affect the fishing though QCL anglers tended to focus much of their effort at Green Point in the morning and Bird 2 for the afternoon bite. Moderately large tides are directing some of the fishing activity to be sure. Herring and anchovy fished on riggers or weighted rods down 35 to 45 feet are producing good results. We are getting a number of nice big Coho in the mid teens but the afternoon Chinook action is what gathers the most attention. QCL guide Ian Barker had the big day, hooking up a stunning 60 pounder with lodge guest Tom Levesque at Bird 2. Just minutes after Tom released this big beauty his fishing partner Eric Senetza tied into another huge Tyee. After a solid battle Ian netted the trophy fish and taped it out to 54 pounds before they carefuly released it. Awesome work guys! Not far away while fishing in the Auklet with guide Mike Peakman, Sonny Wong also found himself tackling a giant Chinook. When Mike had lifted the prize into the boat and measured the big chrome beauty out to an even 50 pounds, the celebrations began as soon as they had successfully revived and released it. Another great "big fish day" at QCL! Doug Stewart also released a nice 36 pound Chinook and Joyce Maley returned to the scale with a hefty 42 pound halibut. The hot fishing coincided with the QCL Couples Dream Catch Weekend. Couples who joined us this year enjoyed some special treats and services from the Twin Creek Spa, a complimentary bottle of our Owners Reserve wine and a copy of our very successful cookbook - A Taste of QCL. The weekend also featured the wines of Quails Gate Estate Winery and participants enjoyed many fascinating discussions with winemaker Grant Stanley who attended with his wife Annabel. Daily wine tastings before dinner in the Totem House lounge culminated with the Winemakers Dinner on Sunday. QCL Executive Chef Ryan MacKay and his team wowed the diners with Salmon belly Confit paired with the delicious Chenin Blanc, Jerusalem Artichoke and Dungeness Crab Soup matched to the Stewart Family Reserve Chardonnay, BC Spot Prawn Linguini and the delicious QG Rose. The trademark Family Reserve Pinot Noir worked beautifully with Spice Rubbed Duck Breast and the balanced QG Late Harvest Optima lifted the Blueberry Amaretto Sabayon to new heights. Rave reviews all around! Plans are already in the works for next years event. - Comments (0) |
August 27th Report Posted By QCL - Sat Aug 27th, 2011 - Filed under: General
Mother Nature has been particularly good to us this weekend, providing at least 2 days of exceptional weather and fishing conditions for the full house of enthusiastic QCL guests. This morning at Green Point anglers enjoyed playing perfect 25 pound Chinooks and chunky Coho, fishing in tight to the kelp amidst Humpback whales surface-feeding on hordes of needlefish. And... the sun was shining and the water was glass-calm! It just doesnt get any better than that! Typically at this time of the season we find many of the fish are offshore and we have the best success fishing the tidelines out in deeper water. But this summer there are still lots of fish in tight to shore and there are healthy numbers of Tyees in the mix. Several bell-ringers in the mid-30s were released this week and a number of them came back to the scale as well. Notably, Chloe Myers caught & released a beautiful big Chinook that taped out to 44 pounds while fishing at Bird 2 with Kevin Clough on Thursday. Well done! This weekend we are still seeing nice big springs with several Tyees in the low to mid-30s coming to the dock. The big fish so far this weekend is a hefty 37 pounder that was released by Lorraine Ma at Bird 2 while fishing with QCL guide Griffin Barlow. Beauty fish Lorraine! Heading into our final trip of the summer QCL guests can expect a bit of everything, though the water should be pretty calm most of the time with light westerlies dominating. We should see the sun a fair bit thru Wednesday so it looks like a great time to go fishing! - Comments (0) |
August 24th Report Posted By QCL - Wed Aug 24th, 2011 - Filed under: General
Looking ahead to the weekend - our Couples Getaway Weekend in fact - we are expecting the southerlies to continue swinging from east and west, providing mostly calm water conditions but likely some liquid sunshine to go with them. Temperatures continue to be in the 15 degree zone and the tide swings are spreading out once again. Looking forward to a terrific weekend of fun up here at the Lodge! - Comments (0) |
August 20th Report Posted By QCL - Sat Aug 20th, 2011 - Filed under: General
Breaking News! 84 pounds! - New Lodge Record salmon caught at QCL this evening! Lodge guest Chris Lewis, fishing with QCL guide Derek Poitras, landed a giant Chinook salmon today which breaks the 11 year old lodge record. Derek and the guys were fishing along the kelp just east of Klashwun Point when both rods went off in a matter of seconds. While Chris played his fish, fishing partner Stephen Mason played and boated a hefty 31 pounder. Chris fish broke the surface a few times and they could tell by the wide shoulder on the fish that this was no ordinary salmon. After a half hour battle, Derek slipped the net under the big silver beauty and they all breathed a sigh of relief before carefully lifting the fish into the boat. Fishmaster Keith Burdett assisted with measurements (51.5” length X 35.0” girth for a score of 84.12 pounds) and took photos before Derek spent 15 minutes reviving the perfect specimen. As they toasted their success with a celebratory drink, amazingly the big Chinook crested 30 feet from the boat, flashed its tail and went on its way! A real Haida Gwaii moment for sure! Congratulations boys! Well done! And thanks for letting the big one go!
Elsewhere on the fishing grounds the catch was a healthy mix of Chinooks and Cohos. We are seeing more of those big Northern Coho starting to show up every week now and Hayley MacFarlane started off her fishing trip with an 18 pound beauty on Friday. Kevin Bay boated a nice 37 lb Tyee and Brett Elliott came back with a big chrome 44 pounder. The fishery seems to be spreading out some now as we enter the latter part of August. A number of boats have wandered off to "the ozone" as we call it, fishing down 50 feet in water depths of around 240 feet. Out there they are finding both Chinooks and cohos along the tide lines, which we have found to be pretty standard for this time of year. However, the bulk of the fish this week are still being teased out of the kelp beds and in close to shore. Standard depths of 40 - 60 feet are producing well though there is always a nice fish or two taken right up on top! Anchovies and herring are producing just as well as fake bait and spoons. Fly casters are still having a great time back in the quiet bays, throwing white & chartreuse clousers to 12 pound Coho! - Comments (0) |
August 17th Report Posted By QCL - Wed Aug 17th, 2011 - Filed under: General
- Comments (0) |
August 13th Report Posted By QCL - Sat Aug 13th, 2011 - Filed under: General  Big tides and uncommon easterly winds have spiced up the fishing experience this weekend, providing QCL guests with some great fishing and some very wet weather. While we have been fishing the whole grounds the bulk of the action has been in the lower end from Bird Rock 2 down to Cape Naden. A number of boats did well over at Cape Edenshaw on Saturday as well. The quest for Chinooks is still a challenge for many as they are catching so many Coho they can t get the bait down to where the springs are! Successful Chinook anglers are getting them down below the 50 foot depth with Coyote spoons, anchovy and herring. The UV purple flashers have been a great help with the dark rainy skies as well. While we have not had a lot of big fish so far this trip we are still hearing the tyee bell ring pretty regularly for fish in the low 30s. A number of beautiful big Coho in the 15 pound class have been showing up so that has many of us excited, particularly the fly rodders. Halibut fishing has been quite rewarding this weekend with some nice big fish coming to the boat. Veteran QCL angler Jack Carley enlisted the help of son Scott to pull a 73 pounder into the boat on Thursday and first timer Amy Fast worked hard to get an 80 pounder up from the bottom on Saturday. Looking ahead to this coming week we are expecting the winds to settle back mainly to light southwest. The tides have peaked over the weekend so the swings will diminish thru the week. Expect the usual dose of liquid sunshine with those nice calm seas however! - Comments (0) |
August 10th Report Posted By QCL - Wed Aug 10th, 2011 - Filed under: General
We have a number of keen anglers with us this week who prefer to fish with flies and they have been having a heyday. The quiet little bay southeast of Klashwun Point has been a fly fishing mecca this week along with similar spots behind Bird 1 and Cape Naden. White Clousers with a hint of chartreuse were causing a strike on almost every cast at the end of the ebb tide this afternoon! We are talking 9 to 12 pound Coho here, not black bombers, stretching the backing on many a reel! If you fish a fly at all (or would like to start) you will absolutely love this! Bring an 8-weight and a moderate sink tip and you will be good to go. Looking ahead to the weekend we are expecting a change in the weather. The winds will settle right back to light - moderate southerlies and we will have some liquid sunshine for sure. The tides are fairly big this weekend, peaking at around 14 foot swings Saturday, but that often tends to concentrate some the feeding activity! Bring it on! - Comments (0) |
